Health administrations nationally are increasingly seeking to integrate recovering addiction patients back into the community. Retail Pharmacy can and does play an important role in addiction care programs that provide treatment and support in achieving better outcomes for individuals involved in opiate substitution therapy.
Methasoft Australia’s complete software program and fully maintained hardware package removes the difficulties and stress pharmacy encounter in dispensing addiction care molecules (Methadone, Suboxone and Subutex) to recovering clients. Turning what has often been an ad hoc social responsibility function into an efficient, dynamic profit orientated addition to Retail Pharmacies service offering.
Methasoft is an “online” computer based solution for the dispensing and management of clients involved in supervised opiate substitution therapy. Methasoft consists of a suite of software applications covering all facets of client management. These include dispensing, flexible client accounts, comprehensively designed reporting and complete inventory control.
Methasoft will accurately measure doses of Methadone by use of an integrated pump and will dispense and label where appropriate both supervised and takeaway doses of medication (also applies to Subutex & Suboxone tabs). The system also automatically keeps records of all medication dispensed for an individual client, including the capture of data into the Dangerous Drug Register. Methasoft includes the use of digital photographs to assist in the identification of clients and also has an integrated biometric fingerprint reader to enable further accurate identification.
Methasoft improves work flow and helps in the management of clinical risk by allowing definite identification of clients and the automated recording of all information about dispensed medication. Methasoft also eliminates the stress related to clinical, medico-legal and statutory governance compliance through automated data capture and report generation – coupled with precise inventory control.
The current system of manual service delivery is time consuming, with pharmacy staff on average spending (including preparation) 6 to 8 minutes per patient dispensing and administering the opiate substitution therapies (this does not include the recording and reconciliation requirements). This equates to a minimum 3 hours per day for 30 clients. Methasoft offers a significant improvement in both time taken to dispense and administer per client and equates to the efficiencies gained with the introduction of computerized dispensing into pharmacy in the mid 1980’s.
Methasoft Australia’s Complete System is a quantum leap in the area of addiction care management for community pharmacy offering a total solution at an affordable price. In most cases the fee for 2-3 clients covers the cost of the total solution. This system allows pharmacy to take a greater role in addiction care services, improving the patient experience while significantly improving the clinical and financial performance of the pharmacy.
The Methasoft system have been extensively researched and developed, representing best practice software management for a crucial role that community pharmacy provides. With an increasing trend for more patients to be normalized through community placement it is essential for any pharmacies interested in addiction care services to consider how Methasoft’s Total Solution can improve their efficiency and ease the burden of compliance enabling them to concentrate on their clinical and business outcomes.
Contact Jim Jones on 1300 739 732 for details on implementing Methasoft in your Pharmacy.